Corsair designed the Carbide Series Air 240 High Airflow for small motherboards but left enough room to fit fair sized add in cards and coolers. The case is 397 x 260 x 320mm (15.6 x 10 x 12.6") and will hold GPUs up to 290 mm in length and a cooler of up to 120mm as well as a full sized ATX PSU. [H]ard|OCP installed two GTX 280's with no issues and had no problems installing several popular AiO watercoolers either. Even with just air cooling it would seem that Corsair's Direct Airflow Path is much more than just a marketing gimmick and kept the components at reasonable temperatures even after heavy loads. It certainly earned the Gold Award it received and for less than $100 it deserves to be on your short list of tiny cases to consider purchasing.

"Are you in the market of a case for that new Mini-ITX or MicroATX PC build? Corsair today shows off its Carbide Series Air 240 High Airflow MicroATX and Mini-ITX PC Case. It's big, it's black, and it will remind you the the Borg. OK, maybe it is not that big, but big enough to allow mATX fans plenty of room for cooling and hot dual GPUs."

Last April Sebastian reviewed Corsair's H105 AiO watercooler granting it a Gold Award for its performance and the ease of installation. It has been almost a year and during that year a lot of new AiO watercoolers have arrived on the market so it is worth popping by [H]ard|OCP to see how this cooler stacks up against the new competition. It is still selling for around $110 and remains at the top of the charts for its cooling ability, unfortunately it also remains near the top of the dBA lists as well for those of you wanting a quiet system. The overall performance of the cooler, especially on overclocked processors helps it retain its Gold standing but keep an eye out for the new Corsair H110i GT AiO which you should be hearing about soon!

"For those of you wanting a double fan radiator for your CPU cooling needs, Corsair has its Hydro Series H105 240mm Extreme Performance Liquid CPU Cooler. This new H105 cooler does not sit at the top of the Corsair Hydro Series, and therefore might save you a couple dollars, but we really want to know, how well does it cool you CPU?"

When we report on Cherry Corp, it is usually about their mechanical switches that are the basis (until just recently) of most mechanical keyboards. They also make full keyboards, including non-mechanical varieties, although they are usually designed for enterprise customers. This one is likely intended for that audience.

Still, making sure people know that your wireless peripheral is encrypted will probably let you access a whole new audience of government, enterprise, and health care customers. The keyboard itself is based on scissor-switches, which are those non-removable keys that you find on many laptops. They are not high-performance, but they can be quite thin and low-profile. The switch mechanism under the scissor struts is membrane-based.

FanlessTech published a preview of the updated H5 case from HDPLEX, which accepts CPUs that are up to 90W TDP. That is a lot of potential performance for a silent device, especially since it includes an optional fanless heatsink for dual-slot graphics cards. That said, because the company creates home theater PCs (HTPCs), they have a reasonable amount of room to work with, unlike a NUC (or similar) form factor. It keeps the components cool by attaching them to the case itself with heat pipes, using its mass and surface area as a reservoir and radiator to keep the heat away. The CPU and GPU each have access to eight pipes, sixteen total.

Beyond the home theater application, I can see this being useful for many professionals, especially sound engineers, who want a lot of performance but no noise. And even though it is not tiny, it is not even a foot and a half at its largest dimension, so it should not be too difficult to find room for it in a cabinet or something. Also, just to put the 90W TDP into perspective, Devil's Canyon is listed at an 88W TDP. You could probably fit one of those in here, although non-trivial overclocking is likely out of the question.

So yeah, fanless Devil's Canyon with options for a fanless discrete GPU. I think I made my point.

This photo is from the previous model. The upcoming chassis is not yet pictured.

The final design is not yet published, which is why we included the picture of its previous incarnation, but HDPLEX claims that production is currently in the tooling phase. Despite not yet being available, it is listed to sell for $275 USD. If the previous design is any indication, it is quite stylish too. It could pass for a retail BluRay player if people don't stop and wonder why there isn't a brand logo on the front.

mATX is becoming more popular as it becomes possible to fit high end components into a smaller case than was previously possible. This has also lead companies to start producing a wide variety of these cases for users to choose from. [H]ard|OCP recently reviewed one of these cases designed by Thermaltake, the Core X2. The case is 18.3"H x 12.6"W x 21.3"L (465x320x541mm) and all of the intakes have removable filters as well as numerous other features including the ability to be stacked in multiples for better cooling. The side panels can be swapped as can the location of the housing for the USB 3.0, microphone, power and reset buttons giving you a lot of flexibility on how you set up your system. Check out the full review to see what else Thermaltake's chassis can do.

"While you may or may not be in the market for a mATX sized computer case, the Thermaltake Core X2 mATX Cube Chassis has some interesting features for those looking to do custom water cooling and wanting to have some easy ways to show it off. All that aside, just how good of an mATX case is it?"

In the automotive world "GT" stands for Gran Turismo (or Grand Tourer), though it often connotes that a model will have more power and speed. Thus, in the parlance of PC components it makes sense that this would represent the fast version of a part - or in this case, a cooler version.

The Corsair H100i GTX

We haven’t reviewing one of the new "GT" all-in-one liquid cooler revisions from Corsair just yet (stay tuned, we will soon!) but we reported on the new H110i GT cooler during CES 2015, which is a large 280mm design. The two new coolers being announced will be the smaller 240mm and 120mm entries in the Hydro series of AIO coolers, and they presumably replace the venerable “i” versions of the well-known H100 and H80 liquid coolers in the lineup.

The Corsair H80i GT

Extending the same new colorful (and customizable) design options from the previously mentioned H110i cooler, the new H100i GTX and H80i GT share these features:

Improved coldplate and pump design

Dual SP120L PWM static pressure fans

Modular, tool-free mounting bracket for faster installation

Built-in Corsair Link support for configuring fan and pump speeds

Use Corsair Link to customize the RGB LED lighting and monitor multiple system temps

There are a couple of important distinctions separating these new models (other than the obvious size difference). With the H80i GT this is the radiator thickness, which is a whopping 49mm thick, making its potential for heavy-duty cooling in smaller spaces a very interesting prospect. The H100i GTX on the other hand offers user-replaceable pump and radiator caps.

The H80i GT's 49mm thick radiator

The MSRP for the H100i GTX will be $119.99, with the H80i GT priced at $99.99. These will be available from the usual retail locations beginning this month.

Fractal Design's 650W EDISON M Series semi-modular PSU has a bit of an interesting mix of features for a 650W PSU which drive the price up somewhat. TechPowerUp puts it's MSRP at $105 which is a bit pricey for a 650W PSU which is not totally modular but with an 80 PLUS Gold rating and a 5 year warranty the price is somewhat justified. The single 12V rail is capable of providing up to 54A to the six 6+2 PCIe power connectors, giving you some ability to power dual GPUs. In the end, it proved to be a solid performer but the decision to sacrifice a second EPS connector for the additional PCIe plugs and the pricing prevented it from winning an award. It is still work checking out if you do not need a second EPS plug.

"Fractal Design has for the first time worked with Seasonic, and the outcome is the Edison Modular series. Today, we will take a detailed look at the Edison M with 650 W capacity, the second-strongest unit of the series. It features Gold-certified efficiency, a semi-modular cabling design, and an FDB fan."

The Swiftech H240-X will be released with an MSRP of $150, $10 more than the smaller H220-X which [H]ard|OCP had a chance to review previously. This model shares the same same pump and water block as the H220-X but uses a pair of 140mm fans to move heat away from the radiator. [H]ard|OCP tested the watercooler twice, once with the included fans which are designed for quiet operation as well as a second set designed for more powerful cooling which did give them slightly better performance. If you prefer peace and quiet the included fans are definitely the way to go, at maximum speed they hit about 41dBA and can operate at lower speeds and noise levels at the cost of increased CPU temperature. [H]ard|OCP does find the price to be a bit high compared to the competition but as they point out, these two Swiftech kits are the only ones on the market with enough cooling power that you could easily add a GPU into the cooling loop without needing to upgrade your pump or radiator.

"Swiftech's H240-X is not your typical All-in-One, aka "AIO," CPU cooler. It is also a bit more expensive than your usual AIO. It does however deliver to you a tremendously upgradable equipment set that allows its buyers a economical ramp into a fully custom liquid cooling system for your entire computer."

The Reeven heatsink stands a mere 125x60x129 mm and weighs barely over a pound even with the included fan installed. This will be perfect for an incredibly thin system and with its small foot print it won't interfere with your RAM as it is not big enough to overhang the DIMMs on most boards. This will by necessity reduce the cooling capabilities as you can see in techPowerUp's testing with an i7-4770K. For those looking for a tiny system that is not going to be an issue and at full speed the fan doesn't reach more than 47dBA so it is also good for those who desire quiet as well as small size. This one is worth checking out if you are looking at this type of build.

"Reveen looks to impress with their small-form-factor friendly Steropes low-profile CPU cooler. At just 60 mm tall, this diminutive cooler may lack size, but it certainly doesn't lack style. Offering solid performance and low noise, it might be just what you need for a SFF or HTPC."

The Cooler Master Hyper D92 does count as compact with dimensions of 5.7 x 3.3 x 4.9", at 448g it is lighter than many coolers on the market and with 53.4mm of clearance over your DIMM slots it should not interfere with most RAM. The reduction in size does have an effect on the heatsinks ability to disperse heat but The Tech Report's testing shows better performance than the stock Intel heatsink when cooling an i5-4690K and at a lower noise level. The performance is not up to snuff for overclockers nor are the stock fans quiet enough at full speed for those wanting a near silent build but for those looking for a good compromise between those two scenarios at a decent price it is well worth considering the Hyper D92

"The Hyper D92 is a compact tower-style cooler with dual 92-mm fans. We tested its performance on stock-clocked and overclocked CPUs to see how it stacks up."

Swiftech has taken a new generation of their MCR radiators and paired it with the tried and tested Apogee XL waterblock in their new AIO watercooler, the H220-X. At ~$170 it is more expensive than many competitors solutions and so will need to perform at higher levels in order to get a recommendation from [H]ard|OCP. The cooler does offer some extras which the competition does not which helps justify the pricing, you can power up to eight fans with the included adapter which makes sense as the modular design of the H220-X allows you to add to the cooling loop if you so desire. The performance was quite good especially when you consider how quiet the cooler operates at full load but as [H] mentions in their conclusion, the price is quite high and they saw the MSRP at a much lower $130.

"Swiftech is a standard name in the computer hardware enthusiast arena. Today we review its answer to an enthusiast All-In-One CPU cooler. As you might guess it is strong on hardware, design, and purpose. The H220-X CPU Liquid Cooling Kit focuses on little to no noise while providing excellent cooling."

Phanteks has introduced a computer enclosure with a new form-factor they are calling “super micro ATX”, a large alternative to standard mATX designs that has the advantage of supporting two complete systems within a single case.

The second motherboard is supported via their ITX upgrade kit, and as the name indicates the second system must be built on the mini-ITX platform. While this might appeal to a very small market there is a need for running discrete systems for some users, and this design is certainly an interesting alternative to running two boxes. How it handles heat dissipation is a good question, but considering the “extreme cooling” capacity of the case - with up to 14x 120mm or 8x 140mm fan mounts - there would be plenty of room for a pair of AIO solutions to keep the CPU heat outside of the enclosure.

The mini-ITX board is installed at the top (Image credit: cowcotland.com)

Deepcool has announced a couple of new mini-ITX enclosures, and they are anything but average.

The Deepcool Tristellar (Credit: Legit Reviews)

First we have one of the wildest looking enclosures at I’ve ever seen (other than the In Win D-Frame mini), and it looks very much like an Imperial shuttle (ROTJ, anyone?). With three sections connected to a central hub, the Tristellar has the look of some sort of spacecraft, and would appear at first glance to be rather complicated to build in (though I'd love to find out first-hand).

Exploded view of the Tristellar (Credit: Legit Reviews)

The enclosure was featured as the basis of an upcoming gaming system from CyberPower, and it would indeed house a capable gaming machine with support for mini-ITX motherboards, full-size graphics cards, and standard ATX power supplies.

The second case is a little more conventional on the surface, but again we have a design that is quite a departure.

The Pentower enclosure (Credit: Legit Reviews)

The upright Pentower enclosure seems to borrow from the design of the latest-gen Mac Pro (albeit in a less cylindrical fashion), but is not built upon the Mac’s cooling design (in which the CPU and GPU are directly connected to the large central heatsink). Such a design seems ideal for this enclosure shape, but Deepcool has implemented their own air cooling system here.

The Mac Pro’s thermal design (Credit: Apple, Inc)

With the Pentower standard components can be used and installation should be relatively easy since “after the shell is removed, all of the panels and trestles are exposed (and) users can install units directly without uninstall(ing) any other part of the case“, according to the press release.

There is no listing for the Tristellar or Pentower cases on the Deepcool website as of today, and naturally pricing and availability have not been announced.

[H]ard|OCP has not been impressed with EVGA's PSUs; they are not bad but do not tend to match the quality and pricing of the competition. The new EVGA Supernova 1300 G2 is available for $180 and could buck this trend, it has a 10 year warranty, an 80 Plus Gold efficiency rating and it looks good on paper. With the ability to provide a hair over 108 amps to its 12V line, eight 6 pin PCIe power connectors of which two can have the extra pair of plugs for 8 pin and solid performance it seems that EVGA has indeed produced a great power supply. [H]ard|OCP does not often award the Gold to PSUs but in this case thanks to the excellent build and power quality along with a very competitive price EVGA has produced a very good product for those who need serious power for their PC.

"EVGA has a bit of a rocky road with HardOCP when it comes to PSU reviews. Today we give EVGA the opportunity to redeem itself with its 1300 watt powerhouse touting "exceptional efficiency" and a fully modular design that is "silent and optimized for the enthusiast." All this with a 10 year warranty? It must be a badass."

During CES we saw a demonstration of a new genre of processor cooling that truly wowed me. That is tough to do - heatsinks and even self-contained water blocks appear to be a dime a dozen these days. Cooler Master has partnered with CoolChip technologies, a start up that promises to make processor cooling more efficient, 2x smaller and quieter too. The secret is kinetic cooling.

Kinetic cooling works by removing the typical fan in a heatsink design and replacing it with a piece of rotating metal. This top metal has fins that resemble that of traditional fans that move air UP and away from the heatsink assembly. These fins are mated with a cooling plate, a base piece of metal that comes in contact with the processor and transfers the heat away.

The key is the connection between the top and bottom metal: using a very thin layer of air that resides between a set of interlocking grooves, the small motor in the center of the cooler spins the groves inside each other without touching, drawing heat from the stationary portion to the rotating one.

This is a prototype of a hybrid cooler combining heatpipes and CoolChip

The result is a cooler that is just as efficient as today's but can be small and generate less noise. Because the top half of the heatsink is actually rotating to provide air movement, you no longer need a fan, lowering z-height. And because you are halving the number of places air is making contact (just fan blades versus fan blades and heatsink fins), sound levels are significantly lower for similar TDPs.

Oh and they look damn cool too. CoolChip says that pricing and build cost will be in line with current heatsinks, alleviating worries of high prices.

be Quiet announced they will be revealing two new low profile coolers at CES 2015, the larger Dark Rock Topflow and the miniaturized Shadow Rock LP.

The Dark Rock pictured above will be good for smaller builds which require a powerful processor as opposed to a BayTrail system and has enough clearance for sockets which are tight up against your RAM slots. If you sacrifice the benefit of the second fan located on the bottom of the heatsink you should be able to fit RAM with larger sized heat spreaders.

For systems squeezed into a tiny case the Shadow Rock LP is a great choice, 4.3" of height with the fan attached will allow you to add third party cooling to tiny systems (yes, the picture has them reversed). You will have to go with low profile or horizontally mounted RAM as the clearance is very tight but this design makes more sense than to reduce the size of the heatsink below 120mm.

Corsair has announced their newest Hydro Series all-in-one (AIO) liquid CPU cooler, the H110i GT. This new model has a 140x322 mm radiator and dual 140mm SP140L fans.

Corsair points out the "striking new look with logo inserts on the block and radiator" which add style, but more importantly part of the design changes with the H110i include a new cooling block to make potential performance gains over existing designs an interesting possibility. Certainly the larger radiator surface area and 140mm fans suggest lower noise.

Corsair Link support is also provided to allow "monitoring and customization of built-in logo lighting, fan speed, pump speed".

Specifications:

140mm x 322mm x 27mm aluminum radiator

Two SP140L 140mm high static pressure fans

Corsair Link support for customization and monitoring

Sleeved wide diameter, low evaporation rubber tubing

Support for Intel LGA 115x, 1366, 2011 and AMD AM2, AM3, FM1, FM2

5-year limited warranty

MSRP: $129.99

The H100i GT Liquid CPU Cooler will carry a $129.99 MSRP and availablity is set for a February release.

Corsair has announced a new liquid cooling bracket for graphics cards, the Hydro Series HG10 N780 Edition.

The bracket allows a Corsair Hydro Series liquid CPU cooler (not included, of course) to be attached to select NVIDIA GeForce cards. What cards are compatible? Reference design NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770, GTX 780, GTX 780 Ti, Titan and Titan Black. (Reference design refers to the board itself, and you will often find aftermarket cooling on reference-based cards in the retail channel. As always, it's best to research your card beforehand!)

The HG10 N780 requires just eight screws to install, and Corsair states that the bracket "when combined with a Corsair Hydro Series CPU liquid cooler" of course, "can reduce the GPU’s temperature by up to 45° C, and works with the GPU’s automatic temperature control (to) lower the speed of its onboard fan for quieter operation".

VRAM and VRMs are also cooled with the bracket, "helping extend the life of the GPU and providing more overclocking headroom".

Specifications:

Allows any Corsair Hydro Series CPU cooler to be attached to and cool NVIDIA GeForce GPUs

Corsair is announcing the newest members of the Carbide Series family of enclosures, with the 100R and Carbide Series 100R Silent mid-tower cases.

The Carbide 100R standard edition with side window

The Carbide Series 100R and Carbide Series 100R Silent will be among Corsair's lowest-cost enclosures at $49.99 and $59.99 each, but they are attempting to avoid "the look of many low-cost PC cases, instead offering an elegant aesthetic that will appeal to gamers, hobbyist PC builders, and system integrators". Along with expected features such as SSD mounts and front-panel USB 3.0, the enclosures also feature tool-free drive mounts (four 3.5" drives and four 2.5" drives), up to five fan mounts (and two included fans), and support for long graphics cards.

Inside the Carbide 100R

While the standard version of the Carbide Series 100R features a side panel window and upper fan vents, the 100R Silent version features sound dampening with no opening on the top, and no window on the side panel to further reduce noise.

Specifications:

Tool-free mounting of hard drives and optical drives

Dual USB 3.0 front panel ports

Direct airflow path to top GPU

Plenty of room for large graphics cards and power supplies

Cable routing channel behind motherboard tray

Up to five fan mounts

Front: 2 x 140/120mm

Top: 2 x 120mm

Rear: 120mm (included)

Two 5.25” drive bays

Four 3.5”/2.5” drive bays with trays that support hard drives and SSDs

Today Corsair is announcing a new member of HX series of power supplies, the HX1200i.

Providing 1200W of 80 PLUS Platinum certified power, Corsair says the HX1200i will be able to drive up to quad-GPU setups with 92% or better efficiency. The fully modular design uses flat ribbon cables for clean cable routing, and Corsair has made use of "specially selected low-noise components" which include 100% Japanese capacitors rated to 105° C. For low noise the Zero-RPM fan mode only spins the PSU fan when needed, and the PSU is rated for continuous power at a full 50° C.

The HX1200i will carry a 7-year warranty, and also includes Corsair Link integration which allows users to customize the fan speed and offers "real-time monitoring of the PSU’s voltages, efficiency and temperatures".